Dealing with the insurance issues that follow a car accident are nobody’s idea of fun, but what about the added issues of an accident involving an uninsured motorist? In the state of Kentucky, it is illegal to drive without insurance, but it does happen and you should be prepared if it ever happens to you.
If you’re in an accident with an uninsured motorist, it means he or she has no insurance company to cover the expenses involved in the accident, either for their damages or for yours. While most insurance policies cover uninsured motorists as a rule, handling the details with your insurance company can get tricky. For this reason, it is always best to seek legal help to handle the legal details for you and represent your best interest.
Contact your auto insurance company to find out if your policy covers accidents with uninsured motorists. If you do, filing a claim through them is most likely the quickest way to get compensation. Your insurance company will then pay for your damages, medical bills, and wages lost while away from work. In order to collect on an uninsured or underinsured motorist claim the motorist in question must be at fault, your damages must exceed the coverage limits on the underinsured motorist’s policy, and you must already have recovered the maximum amount from their insurer.
Although Kentucky law requires insurers to provide coverage for uninsured and underinsured motorists, you may have chosen to waive coverage for these situations to save money on your policy. If this is the case, or if you do not wish to go through your insurance company for another reason, you may choose to sue the uninsured driver for their lack of coverage. But, if you choose to sue the other party rather than go through your own insurance company, you must pay upfront for your medical expenses, vehicle damages, and any other costs. In the long run, however, a lawsuit may eventually cover the damages and help you find closure by pursuing justice after the accident. On the other hand, it is likely that if a driver was unable to afford car insurance they may not be able to reimburse you enough for a lawsuit to be worth the trouble. These are options that are best discussed with your attorney, as they are more accurately determined on an individual basis.
In another scenario, the driver could have some coverage, but not enough to cover all of your medical expenses and vehicle damage. In this case, the driver is considered underinsured. Underinsured drivers are frequently covered by insurance policies in the same way uninsured drivers are. To find out for certain, contact your insurance company for details about your policy.
Regardless of your situation, dealing with insurance policies can be difficult, especially following an accident where you have been injured and are dealing with medical issues. If you are in an accident with an uninsured or underinsured driver, contact a lawyer you can trust to handle the issue effectively and efficiently.
Contact Goeing Goeing & McQuinn PLLC if you or a loved one has been in a car accident.